New Genesee County budget would wipe out sheriff's drug team

GENESEE COUNTY, Michigan -- A drug team formed by Sheriff Robert Pickell is one of the casualties in a budget expected to be proposed this morning by the county Board of Commissioners.

Pickell and Commissioner Patrick Gleason, D-Richfield Twp., said there is not funding for the Sheriff's Posse in what he conceded was a budget filled with "terrible" cutbacks for the fiscal year that starts Oct. 1.

Robert Pickell

Both men said the Posse will be allowed to close out cases already in the pipeline.

The sheriff said he wouldn't discuss his feelings about the cuts or appear at today's commission meeting, but the sheriff has fought hard to keep the drug team ever since he broke away from the Flint Area Narcotics Team in 2000.

"Everything I had to say, I said behind closed doors," Pickell said. "It was very testy. I'm not going to go the meeting and chastise them."

The county's controller delivered bad news about the budget months ago, telling commissioners they were facing a $17.6-million budget deficit because of shrinking property tax and other revenues.

Since then, Gleason and three other commissioners have worked out a balanced budget, cutting about 15 percent of each county department, including the sheriff.

The budget expected to be introduced today could be changed before the new fiscal year starts and at least two commissioners have said they won't support a spending plan that treats all departments equal as this one apparently does.

Commissioners Joe Graves, R-Argentine Twp., and Omar Sims, D-Flint, said Tuesday that they can't support such deep cuts in law enforcement when Flint led the nation in violent crime last year.

"I can't agree that all departments are fundamentally equal," Graves said. "We're almost paralyzed with crime (so) I can't support that ...

"We have a drug problem. It's everywhere," he said. "We shouldn't be cutting (the Posse)."

Pickell formed the Posse amid concerns that FANG didn't go after larger criminal enterprises and didn't stop the flow of drugs into the county, charges FANG officials have said are simply untrue.

The sheriff said he has three detective sergeants currently assigned to the Posse.